Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Tim Sherwood has claimed that Dele Alli's playing style is like that of Frank Lampard, and believes that the 20-year-old can go on to have a career similar to that of the Chelsea legend.

The 38-year-old Englishman announced his retirement from football earlier on Thursday following an illustrious 20-year career that saw him make more than 1,000 appearances for club and country, scoring over 300 goals.

Sherwood, the current director of football at Swindon Town, explained how Alli's success comes down to playing "men's football" from an early age at MK Dons rather than stagnating at a Premier League club academy.

He told Squawka: "I have a theory of why Dele Alli is the way he is because he hasn't had his backside wiped for five years in an academy. He hasn't had it easy, he's been out there playing men's football from the age of 16.

"It's about pushing them forward. Dele is a great example of someone who's played men's football at a very young age and at a good club like MK Dons. He's developed into a world class footballer because of that.

"He's a goal threat - every time he plays, he's like Frank Lampard. I would say he's got a long way to go for the consistency to emulate Frank but he's certainly on the right way."

Alli already has 11 Premier League goals in his 22 games this season and has become a Three Lions regular since joining up with the North London club at the start of the 2015-16 season.